Carol Moseley-Braun on Budget & Economy

Former IL Senator; Democratic Candidate for President

Balanced budget follows from job creation & prosperity

Q: Which should be the priority, balancing the budget or creating jobs?

MOSELEY BRAUN: You have to create jobs and you have to get the economy going to create the robustness in the economy that will produce the revenue to balance the budget.
I mean, balancing the budget is a priority that will come when we create jobs.

When Bill Clinton became president, we balanced the budget and created jobs and had this country on a good economic foot and the people were doing well.
We were in a time of prosperity. This administration has not only had a job hemorrhage, but sent us into record deficits. Their policy of borrow and pass the buck has just simply shifted the responsibilities not only to state and local governments and
tax payers but to our grandchildren, and that's wrong. We, as the Democratic Party, stand for getting this economy back on track and preserving the promise of the American dream that we will pay our bills as we go.

Source: Debate at Pace University in Lower Manhattan
Sep 25, 2003

Support an economic plan that balance the budget

Q: How will you balance the budget?

A: In 1993 I voted as a Senator for an economic plan that created new economic growth and balanced the budget. We should build schools and housing, not prisons,
and focus as much on crime prevention as punishment, by addressing violence and education, health (including mental health), and poverty as we right now spend on trying to resolve the aftermaths of our neglect.

Source: MoveOn.org interview
Jun 17, 2003

Government serves public; don't "starve the beast"

What Bush and the GOP are doing is trying to deliver the last blow of an extreme political agenda that wants to, quote, "starve the beast." What they say is starve the public sector, what they mean is starve the American people.

This
is economy is not working for working people, because the Bush crowd does not appreciate, understand or have any respect for working people. Democrats believe that government can play a constructive role to serve the public interests, to serve everybody.

Source: AFSCME union debate in Iowa
May 17, 2003

Voted YES on 1998 GOP budget.

Approval of the 1998 GOP Budget which would cut spending and taxes.
Status: CR Agreed to Y)78; N)22